Moscow too good for Inter

INTER MILAN caretaker boss Corrado Verdelli's first and last game in charge of the Nerazzuri ended in defeat, as Lokomotiv Moscow comprehensively ended the Italian club's unbeaten record in this year's Champions League.

INTER MILAN caretaker boss Corrado Verdelli's first and last game in charge of the Nerazzuri ended in defeat, as Lokomotiv Moscow comprehensively ended the Italian club's unbeaten record in this year's Champions League.

Following the sacking of Hector Cuper on Sunday, Verdelli was placed in temporary charge of team affairs for the trip to Moscow with Alberto Zaccheroni set to take over the role today. But it was to be a day to forget for Verdelli, who will now resume his role as Inter's youth team coach, with goals from Dmitri Loskov, Mikheil Ashvetia and Dmitri Khokhlov rounding off a comfortable win.

Inter had taken six points from their opening two games, including a 3-0 win over Arsenal at Highbury, and were predicted to claim another scalp against the Russians in Moscow. But any illusions Inter had that this would be a stroll were dismissed with just two minutes on the clock when Maksim Buznikin surged down the right flank, laying the ball off to Loskov who fired home off the crossbar.

After the restart Lokomotiv stepped up the tempo and Khokhlov slipped a decisive pass through to Vadim Evseev and the full-back swung in a low ball, Loskov cunningly stepping over it for Ashvetia to slot home. It was game set and match in the 56th minute when the hosts netted their third. This time Loskov whipped in a cross onto the head of Khokhlov who nodded in from just inside the area.